Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
TOURS FROM ARNARSTAPI
Arnarstapi is a starting point for hikes and jeep drives up to Snæfellsjökull via Route F570 (see
box, p.173), but is also known for its
snowmobiling
excursions across the glacier.
Snjófell
(
T
435 6783,
W
snjofell.is) organizes 90min trips (21,900kr per person for two sharing one
snowmobile; 25,500kr for your own machine); speeding along the ice top is an exhilarating
experience, and the views of the glacier and the coastline are breathtaking when the weather
is good - but don't be tempted to head onto the ice if it's raining because you'll see nothing. If
speed isn't your thing, a slower
snowcat
, a sort of open-top truck on caterpillar tracks, also
carries groups of twenty or so across the ice (1hr trips 8500kr).
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
ARNARSTAPI
By bus
Buses to Arnarstapi run daily in summer from
Hellissandur and Ólafsvík, on their way around the tip of
the peninsula. Note that there are no buses east from here
along the peninsula's south coast.
Destinations
Dritvík (1hr 5min); Hellissandur (1 daily;
3hr); Hellnar (1 daily; 15min).
3
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Snjófell
T
435 6783,
W
snjofell.is.
The red-walled, turf-
roofed cottage at the centre of the village is the place to
check in for both sleeping-bag accommodation as well as
regular double rooms in a newly converted two-storey
building nearby. It's also possible to camp here with full
facilities. The decent restaurant inside the complex is also
the only place to eat in town, serving the likes of soup
(1100kr), lamb chops (3500kr) and fresh fish (2500kr).
Resta
urant o
pen dai
ly 11.30
am-late.
Sleeping-bag
dorms
4920kr
; doubles
13,940kr
Búðir
Nineteen kilometres east of Arnarstapi, and served by all buses to and from Reykjavík,
BÚÐIR
is a romantic, windswept location, a former fishing village at the head of the
sweeping expanse of white sand that backs the Búðavík bay. The settlement, like so
many others in this part of the country, was abandoned in the early nineteenth century
and today consists of nothing more than a hotel and a church, both situated just a
stone's throw from the ocean. Surrounded by the
Búðahraun lavafield
, rumoured to be
home to countless elves, and enjoying unsurpassed views out over the Atlantic, the tiny
pitch-black
church
with its three white-framed windows dates from 1703, and cuts an
evocative image when viewed from the adjoining graveyard with the majestic
Snæfellsnes mountain range as a backdrop. Look out too for the unusual wall, made of
lava and topped with turf, that surrounds the churchyard.
ACCOMMODATION
BÚÐIR
Ì
Hótel Búðir
T
435 6700,
W
budir.is.
Once a
favourite haunt of Iceland's Nobel-prize winning author
Halldór Laxness, this wonderful place right by the sea is a
perfect blend of modern comfort with a hint of old-world
nostalgia and opul
ence: roo
ms are individually decorated
and sure to please.
30,500kr
LÝSUHÓLL
Five kilometres east of Búðir and reached on Route 54, the dot on the map that is the farm of
Lýsuhóll
(
T
435 6716,
W
lysuholl.is) is one of the few places on the peninsula with its own source
of geothermal mineral water. The spring provides natural algae-rich water for the outdoor
swimming pool
and hot pot (mid-June to late Aug daily 2-9pm) and offers fantastic views of
the surrounding mountains. It's also possible to go
horseriding
from the farm; reckon on 5000kr
for the first hour, then 3700kr per hour after that. You can also
stay
here in cabins; 18,000kr per
night) and a campsite, both on the same site as the swimming pool, while the small
restaurant
(daily 10am-9pm) is good for snacks such as soup and home-made bread for around 2000kr.
